12 – 14 June 2019

Wicked problems

Session type:Case Study

Session duration:90 minutes

Presented by:

Ricardo Vazquez

Shopify

About this Case Study

Wicked problems are reactive, multi-threaded and never-ending. They can’t be solved by traditional methods. Having coined the term in 1969, Horst Rittel and Melvin Webber sought out to address the crisis of public confidence in experts and planners at a time of rising affluence and inequality. After more than 40 years, wicked problems are as relevant as they were then. During this session, we will delve into the history, properties and approaches to solving a wicked problem.

About the Speaker

Ricardo is a senior product designer on Shopify’s retail team, where he works on designing mobile experiences to empower merchants to sell products through physical spaces such as brick-and-mortar stores and pop-up shops. Throughout his career, Ricardo has gained significant experience designing for mobile at companies such as Mozilla Firefox, FreshBooks and 500px. He is interested in culture, design, aesthetics, wit, thought, refinement, courage and the happiness of pursuit. When not designing, you’ll find him noodling on his guitar and rowing in rivers all over Canada.